Condos lead new-home sales in GTA

STEVE LADURANTAYE
REAL ESTATE REPORTER— Globe and Mail Update
Published Monday, Nov. 22, 2010 11:15AM EST

Seventy per cent of the new homes sold in the Greater Toronto Area in the second busiest October on record were high-rise condo units, according to stats released Monday by the Building Industry & Land Development Association.

High-rise condo sales were 27 per cent higher than last October, BILD said. Of the 30,914 new homes sold this year, 56 per cent have been high-rise condos.

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Sales of single-detached, semi-detached and town homes have fallen 32 per cent compared to last October, as more people opt for suburban condos rather than a more traditional home.

“Although the City of Toronto continues to account for the bulk of all condo sales, the biggest spikes in activity were in the Regions of Peel and York,” said BILD chief executive officer Stephen Dupuis. “The high-rise housing craze has started to spread to the suburbs and it's a trend which will continue to grow.”

He attributed the slowdown in new low-rise housing to price differences, with a high-rise condo costing about $75,000 less for a similar sized property.

“The high-cost of low-rise living is a reflection of the low levels of inventory available,” he said.

A regional breakdown:

Low rise sales

Durham -43%

Halton -29%

Peel -64.2%

Toronto -2.5%

York -1.5%

GTA -32%

High rise

Durham 11%

Halton 40%

Peel 164%

Toronto 14.2%

York 138%

GTA 27.2%

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